Chakra is a major staple to the Naruto power system; it’s an unshakable pillar that supports the entire infrastructure of the series' combat system. Without it, the concept of shinobi would not exist. It is, after all, the very energy that molded said concept; its roots have already infiltrated the core.

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With that in mind, those who could exceptionally wield chakra are all formidable shinobi. Regardless of the depth of one’s chakra pool, without fine control over the chakra, it would all be pointless. However, unlike one would think, having poor control over one’s chakra is not necessarily a game-changing weakness. There are plenty of shinobi who made it big relying on their subpar control, albeit with much more effort than their talented counterparts.

10 Might Guy

Might Guy giving thumbs up

Chakra control is the very base of the conventional shinobi. Those without talent in that regard (like Might Guy) are better off picking alternate ninja routes. In Guy’s case, he made taijutsu his passion.

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To be able to properly execute ninjutsu, one would need at least an average level of chakra control. Guy, who is lacking in that department, was left no other choice than picking the unconventional route.

9 Rock Lee

Rock Lee ready to fight Kimmimaro in Naruto

Similar to Guy, Rock Lee grew up being overshadowed by the talented youth surrounding him. It took him several folds the effort to be able to achieve whatever his counterparts achieved. And at some times, he would straight out fail regardless of his inhumane hard work.

Guy sympathized with Lee’s situation and picked him as a successor. With hard work and nothing but hard work, he eventually caught up with the other ninja of his generation and became a master of taijutsu.

8 Iruka Umino

Iruka smiling with one hand against his temple

Iruka is the current headmaster of the Ninja Academy as well as Naruto’s closest resemblance to a father figure. Due to his lack of talent, he picked the educational route rather than joining the frontlines.

The level of talent and chakra control are always in-line with each other. Those with terrible chakra control might bloom in other forms, but those with a below-average talent are always guaranteed to have a similarly terrible chakra control proficiency.

7 Choji Akimichi

The Akimichi Clan is one of Konoha’s Five Noble Clans. The members of the clan are mostly taijutsu specialists. Their style revolves around manipulating their body weight to crush their enemies to death.

One of the prominent members of the clan, Choji, is adept at his clan’s secret techniques. That said, these are the limits of Choji. His aptitude beyond his clan’s signature technique is almost nonexistent.

6 Kimimaro

Kimimaro is one of the brightest villains of the Naruto original. He was one of Orochimaru’s loyal subordinates sent to intercept the Sasuke retrieval team. He truly was a boss-level threat to Naruto and the gang in terms of prowess.

Kimimaro’s main expertise lay in the Kaguya Clan’s kekkei genkai, Bone Manipulation. He stitched all his combat capabilities around said kekkei genkai. In the first place, the only reason Orochimaru passed him as a vessel was due to his body’s overall poor chakra aptitude.

5 Tenten

Tenten always gets the shorter end of the stick with regards to recognition. Even though her character was powerful, she never received her rightful chance to shine. Her bout against Temari in the Chunin Exams was as far as she personally went.

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Tenten is a weapon (kenjutsu) specialist. Her vast armory of deadly weaponry is her lifeblood. She rarely dabbles in practicing ninjutsu and whatnot.

4 Shikaku Nara

Shikaku Nara

Prior to his fall in the Fourth Shinobi World War, Shikaku acted as the Hokage’s advisor as well as the central strategist of the village. His true battlefield was in the back; he rarely got himself involved with the frontlines.

That being said, avoiding the frontlines does not necessarily mean being weak. It just means that he is much more suited for the pen rather than the sword.

3 Shikamaru Nara

Shikamaru

Similar to his father, Shikamaru is more concerned with the brain department than he is with the brawns. His individual combat prowess might be well above average, but it is in the office where he shines the brightest.

As a member of the Nara Clan, Shikamaru is very skilled at Shadow Binding Technique, the clan’s signature jutsu. Other than his shadow-based technique, Shikamaru’s jutsu collection is not that impressive.

2 Suigetsu Hozuki

Suigetsu Naruto

The Hozuki Clan is one of the most iconic clans based in Kirigakure. The members of the clan are known for their elusive water techniques and adept swordsmanship. The clan’s main nature transformation is Water Release.

Suigetsu inherited both the best and worst from his clan. That means while it’s true that he is fairly skilled in water and sword techniques, he is subpar at best in every other nature transformation.

1 Zabuza Momochi

Zabuza momochi with his face masked as he looks down

As bad as Suigetsu is in nature transformation, he still has a certain aptitude with Wind Release. Zabuza, on the other hand, is only capable of performing Water Release jutsu. That on top of his swordsmanship mastery is him at his best.

Having a low number of nature types does not automatically exclude ninja from the talented gallery. Though it is true that the more nature transformations one is capable of, the more adept they are in the chakra control department.

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